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Clever Marketing Blog

29th September 2017

The latest UKIP logo has only been out for a few hours and already it’s whipping up a storm of controversy.

The story starts this morning at UKIP’s National Conference 2017 in Torquay. The United Kingdom Independence Party unveiled a couple of new logos for members to vote on – one very dull and boring, the other roaring.

However, as soon as the new UKIP logo, in signature purple, of course, and featuring a very British looking lion, complete with a union flag motif wound into its mane, was unveiled, it received a barrage of complaints from offended people across the nation.

The most high-profile of these was from none other than former England footballer and TV presenter, Gary Lineker.

In a tweet to his 6 million followers, the BBC Sport presenter said the Premier League would be thrilled…

Mr Lineker was referring to an original tweet from the Daily Mirror’s political reporter, Dan Bloom, who originally relayed the news of the new logo as presented to the UKIP conference attendees.

Being intimately familiar with the Premier League’s logo, that he sees day in, day out, Mr Lineker was quick to spot the similarities between the two brands.

When asked about the new purple lion on a white background, a UKIP spokesperson said that the new design “is not a rip-off”. The spokesperson further added that the party had checked that there was no infringement of copyright and added “We’re not that stupid”.

Furthermore, the new icon does have a new name. Whether it’s official or not, the same party spokesperson, when asked what the new lion should be called said to a member of the press “Flossy”.

So. Meet “Flossy”. A purple lion on white background, similar to that of ithe Premier League.

Is this Clever Marketing?

Obviously, with the recent turmoil in the party, which has seen two leaders come and go since the departure of Nigel Farrage, UKIP needed some positive news.

When the two contenders for the new logo were unveiled, the lion received a cheer from the attendees, as The Mirror’s Dan Bloom reported. Or was it a roar?

But you can see why the party have done this. They’ve dropped the pound symbol. Apparently it “didn’t resonate with voters”. That also meant they’ve been able to ditch a lot more of the colour yellow from their brand.

They’ve now got the opportunity to continue with their unique purple. And, as well as the continuity of their differentiating shade, they’ve gone for something patriotic again – what can be more British than that hunter of the Serengeti – the Lion.

OK, that’s a little flippant, of course, the lion has been used in heraldry in Britain for a very long time. But it also has that clever union flag in its mane. This is certainly a design that will appeal to the party faithful. Additionally, it will probably go down well with voters. Put it this way, could you see the old logo as a tattoo on a Brexit voter?

Here at Clever Marketing, we have no opinion, politically, but of the logo –

It’s a clean and clear progression from the last one

It has a broader appeal than just a financial/political one

Forgetting that it does indeed have similarities to the Premier League logo, it has all the correct elements one would expect of a good logo design

It is getting attention and, as the saying in PR circles goes, there is no such thing as bad press.

Will Flossy Survive?

Of course, there is talk that the Premier League are consulting with their lawyers to see if there is a case against UKIP for copyright infringement.

However, when you look at other logos out there in the wild, there are many that are similar – Chanel and Gucci. Bentley and Mini. Autotrader and Pepsi. Sun Microsystems and Columbia.

Whatever the outcome of that decision, the new UKIP logo has certainly started a conversation.

A lot of what has been said in the media has been highly critical but there will be those who applaud and take heart to the new design.

Looking for a new logo? We promise we won’t copy someone else’s, we’re Clever Marketing, we’ve got a reputation to uphold here.

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